Polyvinyl halide ionomers are synthetic organic polymers that have a low ion content and are, thus, generally insoluble in water and soluble in organic solvents. Specifically, an ionomer can be defined as an ionized copolymer whose major component is a nonionic backbone, usually hydrocarbon, and at least one minor component consisting of ionic comonomers with associated counterions. The ionic groups may either have been copolymerized with the major component or have been introduced by modifying a nonionic polymer through appropriate chemical techniques. The acid component, frequently in the form of pendant carboxylic or sulfonic acid groups, is then partially or completely neutralized to form the ionomer.
There is great interest in ionomers which lies in the often profound changes in properties caused by the introduction of ions into nonionic polymers, many of these changes having important industrial potential. These changes manifest themselves in polymer glass transition temperatures, dynamic mechanical properties, and melt rheology.